Home
by VanityWantsYou
Summary: It was times like these when he wished he was human. SasuNaru... sort of


**Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto. Simple as cake.**

**Heh... another SasuNaru oneshot. And this one is a lot happier! Also, I am still working on the ItaNaru oneshot and the new chap of Dotless Dice. I would've had them up both sooner, but I had to study for Biology AND I feel like crap... mehhh, stupid fever...**

**enjoy the strangeness! When I'm sick I hallucinate... so just bear with me... this idea was all do to the hallucinations...**

**Rating: PG-13 for language**

A little golden kitted pawed at the cage he was in, large cerulean eyes watching shoppers wander throughout the store. A lot of the people were women and their husbands, probably buying pets for their children since it was close to Christmas. The kitten meowed happily when a little girl with pink hair came up to look at him.

"Mama, look!" she cried, pointing to him, "isn't he cute?"

"Sakura, dear, you know how much your father dislikes cats," the pink-haired girl's mother said softly while placing a hand on her daughter's head.

"But..."

"How about we get you a pretty little canary? Father likes those."

Sakura sighed and walked over to the birds, looking back at the kitten sadly.

The kitten known as Naruto huffed, upset that he still hadn't been bought. He had been stuck in the petshop for two months already and still no one wanted to buy him. Was there something wrong with him? Maybe he was too gold, or too furry... maybe they thought his eyes were too bright?

"You'll eventually be bought," one of the ferrets in the next cage over said quietly. It was Shikamaru, the fuzzy creature lounging in his favorite blue hammock. He was a lazy animal, always sleeping. That's probably why no one wanted him.

"Thanks," Naruto muttered, his ears flat. For the past week, he had wanted nothing more than to be bought for a smiling child. He wanted a red bow to be lossely tied around his neck... he wanted to be handed over to a little boy or girl on Christmas morning...

"Look at this one, Iruka, I think Sasuke would really like him," a smiling man said while pointing to Naruto. The kitten blinked at the strange silver hair, but grinned inwardly and stuck his paw on the thin metal bars of his cage, his tail fluttering back and forth. He meowed and that brought a chuckle from the man.

"Are you sure? Sasuke's never been too fond of... cute things, Kakashi," a brunette said, unsure.

"Oh, he'll love him. He may not like him at first, but he'll just fall in love with him sooner or later," Kakashi beamed, skipping over to one of the workers and speaking to him about the kitten.

"He might not like him at first? Please Kakashi, how will the kitten feel when he's ignored and glared at the first few days? Maybe weeks?" he sighed and followed his lover.

Naruto's ears perked up and he happily jumped up and down in his cage, his tail continuing to flutter around, "Did you hear that, Shikamaru?.! I'm going to have a home! Those two nice men are going to give me to their kid as a Christmas present!"

"See?" the ferret yawned, "I told you. Ya just had to be patient..." his eyelids drooped and his mouth cracked open a bit as he quickly fell asleep.

Naruto pouted and waited for the two men to come back, excited about finally going to a nice, cozy home.

"Hello there, little guy," Kakashi cooed, waving to the kitten, "Sorry, but we won't be able to take you home today. We have to get things set up for you first... but don't worry. We'll bring in your new daddy first thing tomorrow morning, alright?" the silver-haired man waved to the worker and took Iruka's hand, the both of them leaving the story after bidding farewell to Naruto.

Saying that he was upset was an understatement. Naruto was **beyond** upset, he was lying in the corner mewling sadly, his ears flat and his tail motionless. He had really hoped to have a warm bed to sleep in tonight, but his wishes weren't granted... At least he would be able to see the Sasuke guy those two nice men were taking about... Naruto closed his eyes and let his thoughts of a loving child drift him off into dreamland.

xXxXx

The sound of his cage door opening woke the sleeping fuzzball up. Blues eyes blinked at the pair of dark obsidian orbs just outside of his cell. It was a child... a child with dark eyes and raven hair.

"This is..."

"Naruto," the worker known as Kankuro said while chewing gum.

"Yes, Naruto," Kakashi smiled, "Sasuke, this is our Christmas present to you," he wrapped his arm around Iruka's shoulders and the brunette blushed beautifully.

Sasuke stared at the animal as if it was a rabid bunny and glared, "a kitten?"

"Don't you think he's adorable?" Iruka asked, worried that the boy would reject the kitten completely.

"He's... cute..."

"I told you he would like him!" Kakashi cheered, "but just to be on the safe side, Sasuke, you stay here and spend some time with Naruto while Iruka and I go shopping, ok? Have fun!" the man tugged his lover away, Iruka grumbling about how good fathers wouldn't leave their children alone with high school workers and a bunch of animals.

The little boy frowned and looked back to Naruto, hesitently reaching into the cage to pet the fluffy pet. He smiled slightly when Naruto licked his finger, "I guess having you as a pet won't be so bad... and I'm sure Aniki will like you too...", he pulled the kitten out and held it in his arms, surprised at how warm he was. He laughed and scratched between his ears.

Naruto purred in pure happiness, _I finally have a daddy... and a place I can call home..._

xXxXx

Christmas morning rolled around quickly, too quickly, and the Hatake household was filled with excitement as Sasuke ran around with Naruto, the little boy chasing the kitten around the kitchen while Iruka tried to make cookies.

"Otouto, please play with Naruto somewhere else," Itachi drawled quietly from his spot at the dining table.

"But Aniki," Sasuke frowned, "it's Christmas!"

"That doesn't mean you can bother Chichiue. Take Naruto to the living room and play with your toys."

"Hai..." Sasuke sighed and walked into the living room, Naruto trotting behind happily. The boy plopped down on the floor and pulled out a dark red wagon from under the tree. He smiled at Naruto and lifted him up, sitting him down in the very center of it, "you want to ride around outside?" he asked excitedly.

Naruto meowed, his blue eyes sparkling as his daddy stood up and pulled him to the front door.

"Going somewhere, Sasuke?" Kakashi asked as he came out of the bathroom.

"Naruto and I are going outside to ride around in the driveway. Call us when the cookies are done!" he waved to Kakashi and opened the door, pushing open the screen with his shoulder while pulling the wagon out.

The golden kitten looked around in awe. Naruto had never really been outside before... but the neighborhood Sasuke lived in was really pretty! There were thin sheets of snow everywhere and the sky was a dark orange and pink, various Christmas lights strung upon the roofs of many houses. Some yards even had snow men and snow angels.

As Sasuke pulled him in circles around the driveway, Naruto noticed the pink hue on his cheeks. He then remembered that humans got colder easier because they had no fur, but Sasuke seemed to have enough layers of clothes on... so the small feline didn't worry about. Really, Naruto had grown attached to his daddy in the last few days. They played together, they ate dinner on the kitchen floor together, they slept together... Yes, Naruto loved his daddy very much.

Sasuke frowned in disappointment when his brother Itachi called him inside. Sure, he wanted cookies, but playing outside in the snow with Naruto was a lot more fun, "Do we have to, Aniki?" he whined.

"Yes," the older male said warningly, "now come inside before you catch a cold. And what were you thinking bringing Naruto out here? Even if he has fur to keep him warm, you shouldn't bring a cat outside in such cold weather."

"Right, sorry... um, we'll be right in, ok?" Sasuke smiled when Itachi rolled his eyes.

"Whatever, I just don't want to get a lecture from Chichiue on how I should be more watchful of my younger brother," he said before shutting the door with a soft "click".

Sasuke pushed the wagon over by the light brown shed and picked Naruto up, cradling the kitten in his arms to warm him up. He looked over to the sidewalk when he heard his name being called and sputtered when a snowball collided with his face. He wiped the snow away with his free hand and glared at the two boys.

"Hey there, Uchiha," one of them snorted, "having a nice Christmas, hot shot?"

Naruto blinked and meowed quietly, catching Sasuke's attention, _Why'd those two humans throw snow at my daddy?_ he asked himself, angry at the two kids.

The raven threw another glare at the boys and opened the door, "Go bother someone else, morons," he hissed.

"Hn, too high up and rich to bother with poverty stricken kids like us?" the other child growled.

"I said to go bother someone else!" Sasuke yelled, going inside and shutting the door behind him. His glare melted away and he looked down at Naruto with sad eyes. The kitten had yet to see such an expression from his daddy.

"Finally," Iruka said with a smile, "I already set you up a plate of cookies, Sasuke, they're on the table. And for Naruto, I have a bowl of fresh cut up salmon. How does that sound?"

Naruto's eyes lit up and he completely forgot about what happened earlier. He leaped from Sasuke's arms and hopped to the kitchen, immediately chowing down on the fish dinner.

Sasuke smiled and went to sit down.

xXxXx

"Sasuke, where were you?.!" Iruka asked loudly when Sasuke entered the house, his clothes dirty and his hair messed up.

"Out," the raven replied coldly. He staggered passed his Chichiue and leaned against the wall for support as his body swayed back and forth.

"You're doing drugs again, aren't you...?" Iruka looked down at his feet.

"What the fuck does it matter?" Sasuke growled, pushing himself into his room and slamming the door. He saw his inviting bed and collapsed on top of it, the warm blankets welcoming him into deep slumber.

In the corner of the room was Naruto. The small kitten had turned into a majestic feline, the thick fur had become softer and his large blue eyes were now slanted gorgeously. He stared at Sasuke with worry. Ever since his daddy entered high school, he never gave the time of day to play with Naruto. The teen would sleep all of the time, leaving the cat to wander around alone in the cold house that used to be filled with such warmth and love. Now it was cold and unwelcome...

A few years back, Kakashi had caught an illness when he had gone on a trip to the Phillipines to do business... and had died not even two months later, leaving a sorrowful lover and two beautiful children behind. Not long after, Itachi had become very distant from the remaining family, the slender man getting a job similar to Kakashi's. Unfortunently, his job required him to move to Europe... and so he did. Then the only three left were Iruka, Sasuke, and Naruto. But that didn't last very long.

When middle school had ended, Sasuke finally came out and told Iruka that he wanted to go to another school, that no one liked him because they thought he was a snotty prude. That he thought he was better than everyone else because he was rich. Naruto knew that wasn't true. He knew that his daddy was very kind and loved the people he was close to... and when he realized that those kids at Sasuke's school would never give him a chance to become their friend... he had curled up by his daddy's legs and whimpered all night, upset. He wanted Sasuke to be happy.

Iruka told his son that they couldn't move right away and that he would just have to deal with the students. "Don't let them bother you. Having high self-respect was what Kakashi and I taught you. Nothing those kids say matter," is what the brunette had said.

Then, when Sasuke reached the age of fourteen and entered high school, he changed completely. He would come home before Iruka got back from work, covered in bruises, scrapes, and cuts. Then he would lie in bed, telling Naruto about how much he hated everyone. After a few weeks of the same thing, he slowly stopped talking to his cat companion, prefering to sleep instead... and after another week... he stopped coming home, worrying Iruka to death. The brunette would spend endless hours on the living room couch crying, afraid that he would lose his youngest son too, sobbing and muttering to himself about how he didn't want to be alone.

Naruto had become sad as well. His daddy whom he loved and adored was ignoring him... and his Chichiue. The feline would curl up on Sasuke's bed and make himself fall asleep with the unique scent of the raven tingling his senses. For five months he did this, the cycle the same... but he would feel the occasional rush of happiness when his daddy would finally come home after days of being absent, but his light mood would drop when Sasuke and Iruka would get into a fight. The older man yelling about how drugs were tearing him apart, but the raven had yelled back and left the house again.

This house that was so peaceful and warm... was so different now... and it made Naruto sad.

_What happened to you, Daddy? _Naruto would try to say to the one he adored, but nothing came out... just small whimpers. It was times like those when he wished he was human. He wanted to pull Sasuke into his arms and heat up the shaking body, he wanted to tell him how much he loved him, how much he wanted him to stop the drugs that Iruka kept crying about. He wanted him to talk with him again... to tell him how he felt, to let everything out. But he couldn't do that. He could only settle with curling up by Sasuke's legs and parying that just **one** word would come out of the silent teen.

xXxXx

Naruto stared at all of the boxes sitting against the living room walls, a lot of them had the name "Sasuke" scribbled on the sides in red marker. Said raven was lifting a few crates from the kitchen and carrying them outside to the moving truck.

About a week ago, Sasuke had finally gone to Iruka for help, asking if his Chichiue could help him stop his addiction. He had gotten a little better now, although, he was still going through withdrawl... whatever that was, Naruto had no clue. Things had slowly gotten warmer... the empty place was becoming a home again...

As for the boxes, Naruto had no idea what they were for, but Sasuke and Iruka kept carrying more out and placing them into a gray truck.

"I think that's it," Iruka said with a smile, "now I can finally get you out of this place and you can start over again in a new school... Unfortunently, Naruto can't come with us... Cats like him won't do well in a place like that..."

Sasuke stared at the cat, his dark eyes staring into Naruto's blue ones, "We'll have to... leave him behind?"

"I'm really sorry... and I know you've had him for a long time, but... things like this happen and I'm sure what he wants the most is for you to be happy. I'll buy you another pet once we move down there, alright?"

Sasuke sighed and bent down, scratching Naruto between the ears like he always used to do, "Do you really want me to be happy?" he asked the golden cat sadly. Ever since he ignored his pet, he had felt utterly guilty. And now he was supposed to leave him behind?

Naruto's ear twitched and he licked the hand of his beloved person, meowing softly.

Sasuke smiled and stood back up, "Then I guess... we'll have to find you a new home..."

xXxXx

Naruto hated his new "home", he absolutely hated it. The children were noisy and always yanking on his tail and paws, and the adults never payed any attention to him. They were nothing like how Kakashi and Iruka used to be. And the kids... were nothing like his daddy...

Boy, if cats could cry, Naruto would be lying in a puddle of his own tears. When he was dropped off there, he thought it was just like the baby-sitting thing Shikamaru used to talk to him about when he lived in the pet shop, but after months of being stuck in the chaotic house, Naruto realized that he had been "dumped", so his ferret friend would say. A term used when a pet was left behind by their adopted parents.

_He didn't want me anymore... _Naruto would tell himself while he hid from the hyper children, _he threw me away... _he crawled out from under the sofa and looked around, noticing that no one was around. That surprised the feline, but he gracefully gluided through the room, reaching the open window, _I don't care if he doesn't want me... I want to go back to my daddy... _he couldn't believe he was doing this, but... he leaped onto the couch and jumped through the open window, landing in the flower bed outside. His blue eyes searched the area and his ears flattened at the unfamiliar place.

"I'll find him..." he chose a direction and started running, wanting nothing more than to get home.

xXxXx

The cat stood in front of his old home, his heart falling into his stomach at how empty it all looked, _He's not here... _that thought caused him to fall over into the grass. He closed his eyes and listened to the chirping of the crickets, his tail twittering around, _but Daddy... he loves me, doesn't he? He'll come back soon and take me to his new home..._

xXxXx

Sasuke stood at the end of the driveway, his obsidian eyes tracing over every detail of his old house. It had been six years since he had moved and he had now become a college student in Kyoto, his grades higher than most of his fellow students, but fortunently, none of them hated him because of that. He was glad he moved, he was able to make new friends... but he had also left his very first companion behind.

"I wonder how he's doing..." he sighed and ran a pale hand through his dark locks and walked up to the front door, looking down when he heard rustling in the bushes. His eyes widened when a very familiar golden cat emerged, it's fur dirty and its paws scratched up. The feline now looked very old to Sasuke... but knowing that his pet had waited for him... it made him truly smile.

He bent down and picked up the old cat, petting it softly, "You really are... my best friend, aren't you? You know... I never did apologize for ignoring you all those years ago... well... I'm sorry..."

Naruto smiled to himself as he was enveloped in the warmth he had longed for... as his daddy's petting became softer, he began to drift off into slumber, dreaming of the little boy that gave him a home... and whom he deeply loved.

**It might not seem so great 'cause I'm sick, but I'd love your reviews anyway!**


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